In the two statements, I also will ask you … I also will tell you, the pronoun I is stated emphatically. This indicates that Jesus is placing himself on equal status with the Jewish leaders who have come to question him.

When Jesus says tell me the answer, he really means “tell me the correct answer.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .